Wilhelmsborough
13-02-2006, 09:07
In his short time as leader of Wilhelmsborough, Prince William had seen many unusual documents and bills come across his desk.
None of them however, could come close to the letter he was reading right now.
The letter was sent by Maria Donnovich, the Minister of Agriculture, and George Carroll, the Minister of the Interior. They were making a proposal, unlike anything Prince William could believe.
Your Majesty,
We the Ministers of Agriculture and the Interior have decided to join together to attempt to convince you of a very significant and untouched area of economic opportunity that we believe would be perfect for the Principality to seize upon.
The Prince raised his eyebrows in wonder. An untouched area of economic opportunity? What could that mean?
Now usually, when a country finds itself with a chance to enhance it's economy, it usually comes with a price. For example, when you authorized the mining of Uranium in the Northern forests, it practically destroyed the landscape.
Mention of that time struck a sad cord with Prince William. Around the time that he took power, Uranium was discovered in the north. The only problem was that it was located in the middle of an old forest. Controversy arose between environmentalists who wanted to protect the forest, and capitalists who wanted to raise the economy. Prince William had attempted to compromise by authorizing the mining of only small pieces of land, but somehow, things got out of control and the entire forest was leveled in the rush to extract the Uranium. Since then, the plains of Wilhelmsborough had been barren. It was a decision that he regretted to this day.
In such cases where something has to be given up in order to gain something in return, there is usually a great deal of bureaucracy involved which hems out specifics and compromises over how much will be given up.
But in the case of this new economic opportunity, there is absolutely nothing to loose, and absolutely everything to gain
William furrowed his brow suspiciously. Is that even possible? Can something really have benefits without reprocussions? Now the Prince was interested. He continued to read.
What we are referring to, Your Majesty, is the cultivation of the hemp plant, better known around the world as marijuana.
The Prince nearly fell out of his seat out of absolute shock at what Carroll and Donnovich were proposing. "What the hell?!" he shouted. "Are they completely off their rockers? Drug production, they can't be serious! This will ruin our reputation in the world! Ruin it!" Wait, a minute. Those two are adults. They're government employees and they know the law. Perhaps there's more to this than I know? He composed himself and read on.
Now, we are well aware of the stigma surrounding marijuana. It is illegal in several countries around the world. Though it is not as destructive as heroin or cocaine, marijuana is considered to be a "gateway drug" which will lead to users trying stronger stuff as a means to get high. We believe that this is unfortunate because its use as a drug takes away from its many, many positive uses.
Hemp can be turned into paper which can be used to make books. But unlike books made of wood pulp, hemp paper can be produced for 1/4 the cost and 1/5 the pollution. It is ten times stronger than wood pulp and, this was the most amazing part to us, it will last for one thousand years. Wood pulp paper only lasts about fifty years. Four times as much paper can be produced from an acre of hemp as you can make from an acre of trees.
The Prince's eyes went wide in stunned awe. "Marijuana can do that? My god I..." he trailed off in thought. Hold on a second. This is only paper we're talking about. If that's it, then that's hardly a miracle.
Hemp has many uses outside of paper production. Oil from the hemp seed contains the highest source of Essential Fatty Acids in the world. As you may know, Fatty Acids are important to the body, as they clean cholesterol out of the arteries naturally.
"Wow." the Prince breathed. "The highest source out of every source in the world?"
While we are on the subject of Hemp seed oil, we thought that you would like to know something very important about it. That same oil that can be used to purify the body can also be used as an engine lubricant! In fact, given proper research, Hemp seed oil could replace petroleum fuel itself!
The Prince's heart beat rapidly as he imagined the possibilities. If they're right, we could achieve total energy independence! We would never have to trade for oil again!
Hemp fuel was utilized by American car manufacturer Henry Ford. In fact, the Model-T car was designed to run on hemp fuel!
"Holy cow!" exclaimed Prince William. "I would have never known that at all."
Ford also used hemp to line the side paneling of the Model-T. The impact strength was 10 times stronger than steel alone. Your majesty, do you know how many vehicular deaths we could prevent with companies like Caravan Corps or Ethanhawk Industries installing hemp side paneling in their cars and trucks?
No, the Prince did not know. But he knew that it was probably staggering.
Unlike trees, which take several decades to grow, marijuana takes only weeks to grow. It has very few natural enemies. It is a low-maintenance plant and requires no chemicals to move its growth along. In fact, hemp is the fastest growing plant on the planet!
The Prince let a smile cross his face. Fastest growing, huh? He chuckled. No wonder the crusade against pot failed miserably.
There is not enough room in this letter to fully explain to you the many uses of hemp. But I will say this: If the cultivation of hemp were unrestricted, there could be over 50,000 uses for it. You read this correctly, Your Majesty. Fifty Thousand uses. It's that versatile.
Your Majesty, we strongly advise you to take our recommendations under advisement. As far as we know, there is no other nation in this modern world that has a program such as this. Imagine a hundred years from now. When a student is learning about the history of the world, they will know that the Great Principality of Wilhelmsborough was the first to fully utilize the most versatile crop on the planet. We have taken it upon ourselves to discuss this issue with several scientists and they affirm everything we have written here. It might be possible to start growing within a couple months. The Federal Drug Regulation Agency has several bales of marijuana that have been seized in past raids. With your permission, Your Majesty, if we were to obtain seeds from the FDRA, then this project would be well under way.
But it all hinges on your decision, Your Majesty. It is up to you to make this call.
Signed,
George Carroll - Minister of the Interior
Maria Donnovich - Minister of Agriculture
After reading the letter, the Prince sat in raptured silence. There was only one way to describe how he was feeling: shell-shocked. Yes, he had been shell-shocked by a letter. A letter about a drug which could change the face of Wilhelmsborough, both economically and politically.
But he also had to consider the naysayer’s. They would object, most likely assuming that this was just a cover to decriminalize pot. The Prince shook his head. This would require strong regulation if this was going to happen.
After an hour of careful thinking, Prince William took out a pen and paper and wrote a reply to the ministers.
From: Prince William, Sovereign
To: George Carroll, Minister of the Interior,
Maria Donnovich, Minister of Agriculture.
Ministers,
After careful consideration on this matter, I have decided to heed your words and open up research into the production and use of the hemp plant. However, there is something that you must keep in mind. Though the cultivation of marijuana will be allowed, the smoking of the plant is still very much forbidden! We may put ourselves on the cutting edge in this venture, but I will not allow my nation to gain a reputation as a drugged-out cesspool. Ministers, if you allow this to get out of control, you will both lose your jobs and all government benefits. Good luck in this new field.
Prince William the First, Sovereign
Principality of Wilhelmsborough
None of them however, could come close to the letter he was reading right now.
The letter was sent by Maria Donnovich, the Minister of Agriculture, and George Carroll, the Minister of the Interior. They were making a proposal, unlike anything Prince William could believe.
Your Majesty,
We the Ministers of Agriculture and the Interior have decided to join together to attempt to convince you of a very significant and untouched area of economic opportunity that we believe would be perfect for the Principality to seize upon.
The Prince raised his eyebrows in wonder. An untouched area of economic opportunity? What could that mean?
Now usually, when a country finds itself with a chance to enhance it's economy, it usually comes with a price. For example, when you authorized the mining of Uranium in the Northern forests, it practically destroyed the landscape.
Mention of that time struck a sad cord with Prince William. Around the time that he took power, Uranium was discovered in the north. The only problem was that it was located in the middle of an old forest. Controversy arose between environmentalists who wanted to protect the forest, and capitalists who wanted to raise the economy. Prince William had attempted to compromise by authorizing the mining of only small pieces of land, but somehow, things got out of control and the entire forest was leveled in the rush to extract the Uranium. Since then, the plains of Wilhelmsborough had been barren. It was a decision that he regretted to this day.
In such cases where something has to be given up in order to gain something in return, there is usually a great deal of bureaucracy involved which hems out specifics and compromises over how much will be given up.
But in the case of this new economic opportunity, there is absolutely nothing to loose, and absolutely everything to gain
William furrowed his brow suspiciously. Is that even possible? Can something really have benefits without reprocussions? Now the Prince was interested. He continued to read.
What we are referring to, Your Majesty, is the cultivation of the hemp plant, better known around the world as marijuana.
The Prince nearly fell out of his seat out of absolute shock at what Carroll and Donnovich were proposing. "What the hell?!" he shouted. "Are they completely off their rockers? Drug production, they can't be serious! This will ruin our reputation in the world! Ruin it!" Wait, a minute. Those two are adults. They're government employees and they know the law. Perhaps there's more to this than I know? He composed himself and read on.
Now, we are well aware of the stigma surrounding marijuana. It is illegal in several countries around the world. Though it is not as destructive as heroin or cocaine, marijuana is considered to be a "gateway drug" which will lead to users trying stronger stuff as a means to get high. We believe that this is unfortunate because its use as a drug takes away from its many, many positive uses.
Hemp can be turned into paper which can be used to make books. But unlike books made of wood pulp, hemp paper can be produced for 1/4 the cost and 1/5 the pollution. It is ten times stronger than wood pulp and, this was the most amazing part to us, it will last for one thousand years. Wood pulp paper only lasts about fifty years. Four times as much paper can be produced from an acre of hemp as you can make from an acre of trees.
The Prince's eyes went wide in stunned awe. "Marijuana can do that? My god I..." he trailed off in thought. Hold on a second. This is only paper we're talking about. If that's it, then that's hardly a miracle.
Hemp has many uses outside of paper production. Oil from the hemp seed contains the highest source of Essential Fatty Acids in the world. As you may know, Fatty Acids are important to the body, as they clean cholesterol out of the arteries naturally.
"Wow." the Prince breathed. "The highest source out of every source in the world?"
While we are on the subject of Hemp seed oil, we thought that you would like to know something very important about it. That same oil that can be used to purify the body can also be used as an engine lubricant! In fact, given proper research, Hemp seed oil could replace petroleum fuel itself!
The Prince's heart beat rapidly as he imagined the possibilities. If they're right, we could achieve total energy independence! We would never have to trade for oil again!
Hemp fuel was utilized by American car manufacturer Henry Ford. In fact, the Model-T car was designed to run on hemp fuel!
"Holy cow!" exclaimed Prince William. "I would have never known that at all."
Ford also used hemp to line the side paneling of the Model-T. The impact strength was 10 times stronger than steel alone. Your majesty, do you know how many vehicular deaths we could prevent with companies like Caravan Corps or Ethanhawk Industries installing hemp side paneling in their cars and trucks?
No, the Prince did not know. But he knew that it was probably staggering.
Unlike trees, which take several decades to grow, marijuana takes only weeks to grow. It has very few natural enemies. It is a low-maintenance plant and requires no chemicals to move its growth along. In fact, hemp is the fastest growing plant on the planet!
The Prince let a smile cross his face. Fastest growing, huh? He chuckled. No wonder the crusade against pot failed miserably.
There is not enough room in this letter to fully explain to you the many uses of hemp. But I will say this: If the cultivation of hemp were unrestricted, there could be over 50,000 uses for it. You read this correctly, Your Majesty. Fifty Thousand uses. It's that versatile.
Your Majesty, we strongly advise you to take our recommendations under advisement. As far as we know, there is no other nation in this modern world that has a program such as this. Imagine a hundred years from now. When a student is learning about the history of the world, they will know that the Great Principality of Wilhelmsborough was the first to fully utilize the most versatile crop on the planet. We have taken it upon ourselves to discuss this issue with several scientists and they affirm everything we have written here. It might be possible to start growing within a couple months. The Federal Drug Regulation Agency has several bales of marijuana that have been seized in past raids. With your permission, Your Majesty, if we were to obtain seeds from the FDRA, then this project would be well under way.
But it all hinges on your decision, Your Majesty. It is up to you to make this call.
Signed,
George Carroll - Minister of the Interior
Maria Donnovich - Minister of Agriculture
After reading the letter, the Prince sat in raptured silence. There was only one way to describe how he was feeling: shell-shocked. Yes, he had been shell-shocked by a letter. A letter about a drug which could change the face of Wilhelmsborough, both economically and politically.
But he also had to consider the naysayer’s. They would object, most likely assuming that this was just a cover to decriminalize pot. The Prince shook his head. This would require strong regulation if this was going to happen.
After an hour of careful thinking, Prince William took out a pen and paper and wrote a reply to the ministers.
From: Prince William, Sovereign
To: George Carroll, Minister of the Interior,
Maria Donnovich, Minister of Agriculture.
Ministers,
After careful consideration on this matter, I have decided to heed your words and open up research into the production and use of the hemp plant. However, there is something that you must keep in mind. Though the cultivation of marijuana will be allowed, the smoking of the plant is still very much forbidden! We may put ourselves on the cutting edge in this venture, but I will not allow my nation to gain a reputation as a drugged-out cesspool. Ministers, if you allow this to get out of control, you will both lose your jobs and all government benefits. Good luck in this new field.
Prince William the First, Sovereign
Principality of Wilhelmsborough